From Shoeshine Boy to Pickleball Blogger: My Wild Journey into the World of Pickleball
I’ve been hustling since I was 11, shining shoes for spare change. Somehow, that first job kicked off a lifetime of entrepreneurship—leading me through finance, leadership, launching my own firm, and eventually walking away from it all just before the world shut down in 2020. What came next? Well… let’s just say things got weird. Fast forward to today, and I’m running a pickleball blog (with zero blogging experience) and playing a sport I once knew nothing about—but now I’m all in. Want to know how I ended up here? Buckle up. It’s a fun ride.
Biography
I’ve been hustling since I was 11 years old. My first gig? A shoeshine boy. Picture little me, running around with a rag, making shoes sparkle for a couple dollars. That’s where it all started—my love for business and doing things my own way. I kept that entrepreneurial spirit alive, running small businesses through my teenage years. After college, I found my way into finance, managing insurance and investments for my own clients. It was rewarding, but the real fun came when I stepped into leadership.
Helping new advisors grow their business? I loved it. I built some pretty amazing sales teams, too—teams that broke records and hit crazy numbers. That success eventually led me to open my own firm, Hoopis Group. For eight years, I poured everything into building it up to 90 advisors at our peak. We had a killer business, but man, the grind was real. By 2020, I was ready for a change. We merged the firm, and I walked away, thinking I’d take a break and figure out what was next. Then COVID hit. And, well… things got weird.
During that time, I tried my hand at a bunch of stuff—executive coaching, insurance deals, and even writing a book. I’d heard about pickleball but never really gave it a shot. Out of nowhere, though, I decided to start a blog. Honestly, I barely knew what a blog was at the time, but I figured, why not? So I launched an outdoor blog and wrote about camping, sports, and games. Then, in 2022, I put up a post about pickleball—and it blew up. People loved it. I was onto something.
So, I kept writing about pickleball. And playing. And watching. And reading. Before I knew it, I was all in. I got so hooked that I even started my own pickleball company—Hoopis Pickleball—where we sell what I proudly say is the greatest pickleball backpack ever.
Now, here I am, running Pickleball Pete’s Perspective, a blog dedicated to everything pickleball. I love this game—the fun, the strategy, the people. Pickleball isn’t just a sport; it’s a community. And my goal is simple: I want to introduce as many people as possible to the joy of pickleball.
On the blog, I write honest reviews of paddles and gear, playtest everything I can get my hands on, and even survey my buddies on what works and what doesn’t. I attend tournaments, watch matches on TV, and geek out over all things pickleball. I’m here to share what I learn, what I love, and maybe even convince a few of you to pick up a paddle and join the fun.
So, welcome to my little corner of the pickleball world. Let’s serve up some fun and keep the game going!
